Now, if it were stated like this - The perceived social reality in the imagined social imagination leads us to think that we are living in an information agreement reality whereby the only way we can agree on anything is that we agree we can perceive something and imagine it to be something. Well, that's not an oxymoron.
The terms perception of social reality and the social imagination are not opposing. Its not hard to imagine that research regarding the concept of social reality perception was at the foundation of 20th century social scientific research, and there is no indication of a decline in academic interest in this topic in the 21st century. Importantly, this topic has drawn together researchers from across the core social sciences, including psychology, sociology, communication, and political science. Why is that?
Its because of the ongoing debate about social reality. Many argue this - aren't we an evidenced based reality? No. What is evidence anyway? Evidence is corroboration which means having the ability to compare information provided by two separate sources and find similarities between them. Finding corroboration between sources strengthens your conclusions, especially when you are making a historical argument. To me, that sounds like agreement reality.
Isn't the sun a star; isn't there plenty of evidence for that? The sun is a star because we say it is... and yes, there is plenty of evidence for that; especially when you consider what evidence is... just stated above. So, am I saying that nothing is real until we observe it? Well, in quantum physics that is the case.
Werner Heisenberg, among others, interpreted the mathematics to mean that reality doesn’t exist until observed. “The idea of an objective real world whose smallest parts exist objectively in the same sense as stones or trees exist, independently of whether or not we observe them ... is impossible,” he wrote. John Wheeler, too, used a variant of the double-slit experiment to argue that “no elementary quantum phenomenon is a phenomenon until it is a registered (‘observed,’ ‘indelibly recorded’) phenomenon.”
There are plenty of quantum theories and experiments out there about this in context of light particle behavior. But, in all cases, it comes down to the same truth... we cannot escape observation of the event and what it means to us plays into the whole scheme. It's meaning that we are truly after when you think about it. This is what the social imagination craves. That is why, we find many arguments concerning the nature of reality and its description.
If nothing else, these experiments are showing that we cannot yet make any claims about the nature of reality, even if the claims are well-motivated mathematically or philosophically. And given that neuroscientists and philosophers of mind don’t agree on the nature of consciousness, claims that it collapses wave functions are premature at best and misleading and wrong at worst.
Now, if we can agree on that much... we are doing ok. Why should I think that's ok? Well, in sociology, interactionism which happens to be my forte, is a theoretical perspective that derives social processes (the social imagination) from human interaction. It is the study of how individuals shape society and are shaped by society through meaning that arises in interactions.
Given that, I can also tell you that no one person could exist whatsoever, I mean literally; let alone exist on his/her own if there were no construct to interact with (basic landscape).... let alone the lack of any other person or concept of another person. The one example that illustrates this for the laymen is the film - Castaway with Tom Hanks.
Bottom line is this folks, the only evidence we have for our existence is what we agree on is real to us and for us... that later here implies 'meaning' and even that changes based on 'place' as in basic landscape construct. Which brings us to the always greater question... who made that for us to agree on is real and for us to exist in 'meaning'. Who made the construct and gave us a social imagination?
For what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse. For although they knew God, they neither glorified Him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and darkened in their foolish hearts.…Romans 1:19-21.
He holds all things together ~ Colossians 1:17. Now to Him who is able to do so much more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen ~ Ephesians 3:20-21.
*Online source ~ https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/what-does-quantum-theory-actually-tell-us-about-reality/
Can we control reality? Some people would like to think so... maybe, because they imagine they can. And here, lies the problem... they maybe forgetting that we live in a 'social reality'. One that does not exist unless we agree that it does. That happens through social interaction. While that much is true, there is yet a necessary 'reality' as in an already existing basic construct that we cannot change. Which is that He is the way, the truth and the life! John 14:6.
ReplyDeleteThrough him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made ~ John 1:3.
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